John 17:20-23
20 ‘My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one – 23 I in them and you in me – so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
On Sunday we looked at Jesus lived out emphasis on building and strengthening relationships within the church. In this passage towards the end of John, as he prays for his disciples past and present, he reveals his theology behind this. The church should focus on relationships because we are made in God’s image and God is relationship, the loving united relationship of Father, Son and Spirit. This is not just for our own good but for the good of others. Through our loving relationships, others will see and come to know God. How do I know, not just because its in the Bible, but because that’s how I became a Christian myself.
Thank you for the gift of our family at Wormley, and the astonishing realisation that this family is part of your family. Help us to embrace it and through that declare the wonder of you, Father, Son and Spirit!
Leave a Reply